The Little Match Girl
by Mcxynth
Summary: Even in this season of love and warmth, there are people around of us who experience troubles, loneliness, brokenness, pain... Their hearts are torn and without warmth... There is one such girl.


**THE LITTLE MATCH GIRL**  
_**Summary: Even in this season of love and warmth, there are people around of us who experience troubles, loneliness, brokenness, pain... Their hearts are torn and without warmth... There is one such girl...**_  
_**Rating: T for Safety**_  
_**Genre: Drama, Family, Hurt/Comfort**_

A special Bleach fic~! ^_^ It's short... but read on~!

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_Let us never forget that while many of us feel the warmth and goodwill Christmas and New Year has to offer_

_There are countless others around us who feel a sense of darkness_

_Of Loneliness_

_Of Brokenness_

_Of Pain..._

_There are hearts that are torn... With no one around to mend it... _

_No one to comfort it_

_No one to provide warmth..._

_And there is one such girl..._

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**Normal POV**

It was a terribly cold night. It was nearly quite dark. The snow was piling up.

It was the last evening of the year.

In this cold and darkness, a poor girl walked along the street. Bareheaded. Barefooted. When she left home, she had slippers on. But what good was it for? They were too large that the girl lost them as she shuffled across the streets, away from the carriage that rolled by dreadfully fast. One slipper was nowhere to be found. The other was stolen by an urchin boy who ran off with it.

The young girl walked on, her feet quite red and blue from cold. In her apron, she carried a quantity of matches; a bundle of them she held in her hand. _Nobody _bought from her the whole day. _No one _gave her even a single penny.

She crept along, trembling in the cold. Flakes of snow covered her beautiful raven hair, which fell straight along her back. But she never once thought of that, of course.

Candles glowing by the windows.

The delicious smell of roasted turkey.

The sights of New Year's Eve.

Yes, those were what filled her thoughts.

In a corner formed by two houses, of which one advanced more than the other, she seated herself down and tried to make herself comfortable. She didn't dare to go back home. For if she hadn't sold any matches and couldn't bring any penny, her father would certainly give her blows. It was cold at home, too, for above her there was only a roof through which the wind blew, even though the cracks were already covered up with straw and rags.

The girl rubbed her hands that were numbed with cold. A match might be able to provide for her a world of comfort...

She took a single match out from the bundle, drew it against the wall, and warmed her fingers with it. The match blazed with a warm, bright flame like that of a candle. The girl held her hands over the wonderful light. To the young maiden, it seemed as though she was sitting before a large furnished stove. The fire burned with such delightful warmth.

The relieved young girl stretched her feet out to warm them, too, but the small flame went out... the stove vanished... and what was left was only the remains of the burnt-out match in her hand.

She rubbed another against the wall. As a result, it burned brightly and where the light fell on the wall, the wall became transparent like a veil, that she could into the room.

On a table was a snow-white tablecloth. Upon it were splendid porcelain china and stuffed roast turkey steaming fresh from the oven. And...

What was that?

The turkey hopped down from its dish, reeled about on the floor with its knife and fork in its breast. It came up on the little girl and-

The match went out. Nothing but the thick, cold, damp wall was left behind.

The young girl lit another match and now she was sitting under the most magnificent Christmas tree she has ever seen. It was huge and extravagantly decorated. Thousands of lights were burning on the green branches and gaily-colored pictures looked down upon her. Stretching out her hands, the girl reached out for them when the match went out once again.

The lights of the Christmas tree rose higher and higher, and she now saw them as the stars of heaven that lit up the night sky. She saw one fall down and form a long trail of fire.

"Someone died!" the girl gasped. Her old grandmother, the only other person aside from her precious childhood friend who loved her dearly, and both were now no more, had told her that when a star falls, a soul ascends to God.

She drew another match against the wall. It was again very warm, and in its shine there stood her old grandmother, so bright and radiant, so mild, and with such an expression of love. Beside her stood her childhood friend, his snow white hair glowing, his face showing the same wamth and love.

"Grandmother! Shiro-chan!" cried the little one. "Oh, take me with you! You'll go away when the match burns out; you'll vanish like the warm stove, like the delicious roast turkey, and like the magnificent Christmas tree!" And she rubbed the whole bundle of matches quickly against the wall, for she wanted to be quite sure of keeping her loved ones near her. And the matches gave such a brilliant light that it was brighter than at noon-day: never formerly had the grandmother been so beautiful and so tall and her friend so handsome and charming.

"Momo..." they said simultaneously as they looked on her with warmth and compassion. They took the little maiden on her arms, and they flew in brightness and in joy so high, so very high...

Above was neither cold...

Nor hunger...

Nor anxiety...

_They were in Paradise._

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But in the corner, at the cold hour of dawn, sat the poor girl, with rosy cheeks, smiling lips, and snow-covered raven hair leaning against the wall-frozen to death on the last evening of the old year. Stiff and stark sat the child there with her matches, of which one bundle had been burnt.

"Look at all those matches!" the people gasped.

"She just wanted to warm herself," the people said.

"Poor girl," the people commented.

No one had the slightest suspicion of what beautiful things she had seen.

No one even dreamt of the splendor in which, with her grandmother and childhood friend, she had entered in the joys of the New Year.

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Happy New Year to all! ^_^

Let us all pray for those who are like Momo in this short story.

Let us not ignore those around us.

Everyone has the privilege to be happy in this world of darkness :)

Please tell me what you think! Leave a review!

Ciaossu~

- Mcxynth -

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_~ This story is based from a story written by Hans Christian Andersen of the same title. ~_


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